Huskers Move Up, Finish Ninth in Minnesota

Minneapolis, Minn. - The Nebraska swimming and diving team wrapped up competition at the Big Ten Championships on Saturday evening at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center.

The Huskers finished in ninth place, overall, scoring 195 points. The squad moved up two spots from last season’s 11th place finish in which they scored 82 points.

Saturday evening’s session began with the 1,650-yard freestyle. Bailey Pons (16:43.76) and Morgan Flannigan (16:48.48) finished 19th and 22nd, respectively. Flannigan’s time was a career best in the event.

1,650-yard Freestyle Results

19th - Bailey Pons, 16:43.76

22nd - Morgan Flannigan, 16:48.48 (career best)

37th - Ashleigh Grammar, 17:44.42

38th - Michaela Cunningham, 18:09.97

In the 200-yard backstroke, Ellan Dufour took first place in the C Finals with a school record time of 1:57.23. The senior broke Jane Glazebrook’s record of 1:57.99 that was set in 1998. Dufour finished in 17th place in the event.

Ariel Weech was the top Husker finisher on the day, placing sixth in the 100-yard freestyle. The senior swam a career-best time of 49.13 seconds.

Taryn Collura and Hayley Martin also scored in the event for the Huskers, placing 13th and 15th, respectively. Collura swam a 49.52 while Martin finished in 49.97.

The final swimming event of the day saw Natalie Morris finish 13th in the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 2:00.76. The sophomore moved up two spots from her qualifying place of 15th. Freshman Melisa Mexia took 21st place with a time of 2:02.46.

In the diving well, Amy Herman and Nicole Schwery finished 15th and 16th, respectively, in the platform diving competition. Herman posted a score of 265.75 while Schwery scored 260.05. Senior Kailey Harmon finished in 17th place with a career-best score of 239.30.

Platform Diving Results

15th - Amy Herman, 265.75

16th - Nicole Schwery, 260.05 (career best)

17th - Kailey Harmon, 239.30 (career best)

In the final event of the Big Ten Championships, the Huskers took fourth place in the 400-yard freestyle relay, posting a new school record time of 3:18.10. The team of Ariel Weech, Hayley Martin, Shannon Guy, and Taryn Collura broke the previous record of 3:18.46, set in 1998.

With the time in the 400-yard freestyle relay, the Huskers broke their eighth school record of the meet. It was also the fourth Nebraska school record relay time posted over the four days.